Wilding Park: Assn. To Meet Council

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31307, 1 March 1967, Page 18

Wilding Park: Assn. To Meet Council

I'he Canterbup’ Lawn Tennis Association will soon meet the Christchurch City Council to inquire about assistance in maintaining Wilding Park. A quarterly meeting of delegates decided on this course last evening.

The meeting did not approve a management committee suggestion that the park be given to the city council if the council would be prepared to take it over and lease it to the association.

The decision to meet the city council was taken in committee after delegates had suggested, among other things, raising money from housie-housie competitions and raffles, selling the hard courts or building squash courts for use all the year. The consensus of opinion opposed givng away the park. The most popular suggestion, and the only one applauded, was from the association secretary (Mr B. W. Crofts). It was that the association raise £lO,OOO by raffles and other fund-raising efforts and thereby earn a Lottery Board grant of £5OOO. Squash Buildings The £15,000 so gained would then be used to erect squash buildings, in accordance with plans made by a management committee meeting. These were that the association build the courts for about £14,000 by debentures and mortgages raised. The plan

was subsequently defeated by delegates who would not allow the park to be mortgaged.

The annual income from squash fees (the squash club would be an affiliated body of the association) was expected to provide the necessary finance to maintain the park. The association’s constitution had already been amended to permit the formation of the club, Mr Crofts said.

Overdraft Reduction Mr M. C. Healey (the management committee chairman) said his committee had no specific plan to present to the meeting. The matter had arisen from the committee's last meeting when it discussed the association's financial problems; the

bank wanted a reduction In the £l7OO overdraft and a loan had to be paid off. The committee wished to rid itself of the annual struggle to maintain the park while trying to raise money “for tennis itself.”

The Wellington Tennis Association, spending thousands of pounds a year to maintain Central Park, had faced the same problem. It had asked the Wellington City Council to take over the park, which was now maintaining it entirely. A caretaker had been appointed and the association in return was paying a rental of £lOOO “To us that seemed very reasonable because the association previously paid about £3OOO a year. There is a difference in Christchurch because we own the land which is worth about £60,000. The Wellington association did not own the land, but put up the buildings and made improvements. “A lot of people were not in favour of us borrowing money on Wilding Park, ao, like Wellington, we have gone to the council. So far we have only written to ask for a discussion.” Approval Necessary The association could not enter Into an agreement with the council without approval from a subsequent meeting of delegates, Mr Healey said. Mr A. D. Atkinson said there were 14 grass courts at Central Park, while Wilding Park contained 24 grass and 18 hard courts. “On that basis I can’t see the council charging us less than £2OOO a year. “I can’t see that we would be better off paying them that sum when our own upkeep would be about the same,” Mr Atkinson said. Mr Crofts said It had cost the association £3550 to maintain Wilding Park last year. The net deficit for the year after allowing for administration expenses at £BB6 was £764. Depreciation was £396.

Earlier in the meeting Mr Crofts reported that the association now had a bank overdraft of £530. However, less than half the clubs had paid their affiliation fees and when all 30 had paid up, “within the next week or two,” the account would go into credit until the end of the financial year. Estimated profit for the year could be just over £2OO, but this was after raising £lOOO at the start of the season. The profit and a possible grant would be largely absorbed by the purchase of a new mower. Reducing Park Size Mr G. F. Sheppard said discussion would be nebulous until there had been discussion with the city council. Rather than getting rid of its asset, to secure a liability, the committee should give consideration to reducing the park to a size it could afford to keep. Mr J. Taylor (University) advocated selling all the hard courts, adding that the association faced costs of between £l5-20,000 in the next 10 years in resurfacing and also rebuilding the main stand. Supporters l Club Mr G. Atkinson, a member of a sub-committee appointed to form a tennis supporters* club in Christchurch, said that on March 20 the club would hold its inaugural meeting. Ths club would be similar to that operating for cricket; It would have Its own constitution and officers and the aim of assisting, financially and personally, the sport of tennis. The older tennis supporters of Canterbury would regret any suggestion of Wilding Park being given away.